


the bird

by orphan_account



Category: Warriors - Erin Hunter
Genre: Gen, WC, Warrior Cats, hawky boi, shit gets real, tadpole exists, waca, warriors - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-05
Updated: 2018-09-05
Packaged: 2019-07-07 05:10:00
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,241
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15901530
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: but he sang louder, louder inside the house!and no, i couldnt get him out!so i trapped him under a cardboard boxstood on it to make it stop!i picked up the bird and above the din,i said"that's the last song you'll ever sing!"held him down, broke his neck,taught him a lesson he wouldn't forget!~





	the bird

grass brushed his thick pelt as he lay there in the grass. as his nerves slowly numbed, he felt the feeling of each green blade against him ebb into nothingness. his sides had long stilled, and his vision was cloudy. hawkfrost wished that son his soul would be fetched by a starclan cat, to bring him up to the afterlife he deserved- he'd be a hero, who'd take his father's place in starclan where they denied tigerstar. he'd be a hero- to do his father's bidding from the side, and thus respect the code. he had no blood on his paws- he'd left the dirty work to brambleclaw.

_some good decision that was._ he thought spitefully. it was his idea to let his brother deliver the kill- and that was why he was laying here, readied to be reaped by a starclan cat. 

it seemed like hours before at last, there was a great flash of light. his senses returned to him so violently he stiffened until he couldnt move, gasping for air in terror. at last, he shook himself free of the terrifying feeling, glancing around wildly. "well? where's everyone here to thank me?" he meowed into the nothingness of the dark blue forest around him. great cliffs surrounded him, and from high up he thought he saw motion. 

"nobody really wants to thank you, hawk." a voice all too familiar murmured.

hawkfrost had to force his head to turn, becoming aware that his throat had tightened to the point of not being able to breathe. at last, air filled his lungs in a shocked gasp as his notion was declared reality. 

it was tadpole. only it wasn't. the small, fluffy dark gray kit with the cream-colored face that he'd known long ago in his childhood now glared at him, his body sleek and resembling something like a windclanner's- clearly taking more after his mother's form than his father's. his light blue eyes were now a light green- the pupils were the signature white of a starclanner, and stars dappled his dark pelt. he sat down, eyes still locked with hawkfrost's. "miss me?"

hawkfrost tried to regain his dignity, shaking his head. "why are you here? how did you get here? where's the celebration of my greatness?" he pressed.

tadpole's eyes narrowed more. "i followed you and mothwing here when you first came to the territory. mom's visit right before the journey helped guide me to you to begin with. i met some nice cats, and i've watched you and mothwing grow- and i've aged myself with you." 

the tabby blinked. "you were there all along? did you see-"

"yes. i saw you meeting with our father. a horrible tom. someone even  _i_ avoided. and i knew little of his deeds until recently." he frowned, eyes sorrowful. "why did you join with him?"

"because he was strong. i knew who i was siding with! you saw how i handled him!" hawkfrost barked. "now answer my questions! where is this place?"

tadpole shrugged. "this? it's a limbo, of sorts...purgatory? is that the word? i think so. no matter what the word is for it, this is where your decisions come to light- where you'll reflect on what you've done." tadpole began to circle hawkfrost. "you, in particular, have made many poor decisions."

"what? i have  _no_  blood on my paws! let me into starclan already!"

"no, i suppose not. but you have committed other crimes. need i say the list?"

hawkfrost paused, turning to face his brother. "wait-"

but the tom started yowling into the air. "faking signs from starclan multiple times, even moreso doing it for your own benefit! joining sides with the dark forest, and tigerstar, and not regretting it! threatening and blackmailing cats to do your bidding! doing whatever you can to stay deputy- including turning away warriors who challenged your position as deputy solely because of that. wanting to kill cats to begin with! what's more, trapping one in a foxtrap!" with every charge, his voice grew louder. 

"shut up, shut up!" the tabby spat under his breath, realizing that now, from atop the great cliffs, the eyes of cats glowered down at him. most he didn't know, but still seemed to spark recognition within his mind. a blue-gray she-cat, a tortoiseshell tom with a striking red tail, a dark red-brown tom who seemed quite chubby for a warrior- and smelled of both forest and kittypet from what he got a whiff of. a dark gray tomcat similar to the blue-gray fae. they were all so familiar, but they werent his memories he saw. "stop talking!" he screeched. this was ruining his chance of getting into starclan! 

"no! this is your punishment! this is your wrong! you've hurt more cats than you know!" tadpole yowled back, thick tears spilling down his cheeks. "you'll never be saved from what you've become! you're nothing but a slave to our father- you're as much a monster as he!" and here he began chanting the crimes of the tom again, voice echoing off the great rock walls towering over them, and singing into the night like the most wicked birdsong hawkfrost'd ever heard. 

he lunged at tadpole desperately, but his claws met air as the lithe cat dodged. tadpole kept yowling his crimes, now beginning to repeat the list as he choked on sobs. louder, louder. hawkfrost yowled, leaping onto tadpole, this time his claws meeting flesh that they sliced into cleanly. he held him down, pressing his weight onto him, then yanked him up by the scruff, snarling. tadpole didnt fight back, just kept yelling into the air. it sounded like a birdsong, it truly did, but wicked and taunting. 

"you damned creature! you're a mockingbird! a horrible mockingbird, with a terrible song!" hawkfrost wailed, desperation and rage burning his veins as his claws tore at him. 

tadpole kept spewing his words into the night, but now he fought back, kicking hawkfrost away and watching him slide across the clearing. the tabby tom choked on the dust that clouded around him, shaking himself off and standing, facing his brother as tears of frustration welled in his eyes. the noise didnt stop, he was still chanting. a horrible sound.  _why won't he just stop!?_

"you damn bird, that's the last song you'll ever sing." he lunged, barreling the dark gray tom over and holding him down as his claws ripped at his brother, who no longer thrashed against him and just stared into his eyes.

hawkfrost bit deep into his brother's throat, placing his massive paws against the smaller skull under him until at last there was a snap. and it was quiet.

a sweet silence that crept into his fur. hawkfrost stood over the body of his brother, sides heaving as he looked at what he'd done. he'd taught him a lesson he'd never forget, that was clear. and as the quiet of the clearing soaked into his conscious, he realized what had happened. he glanced down again, and to his sheer terror, tadpole's broken neck was fixed.

his eyes pierced into harkfrost's soul again, dull yet full of emotion. and that glimmer of disappointment, it told him all it needed to tell.

"you've made your choice."

and then the world around him warped, and turned dark. thick smoke clouded the inside of his lungs. 

and the dark forest's dry earth stared back unforgivingly where tadpole had once been.

 


End file.
